Foundation garments and swimwear require close accommodation to the body. Foundation garments are undergarments designed to temporarily alter the wearer's body shape by supporting, stabilizing or contouring body parts to enhance the figure or to alleviate medical problems. Typical foundation garments include for example, brassieres, girdles, corsets, corselets, bodysuits, body briefers, control underwear, and control panel nylons.
The female breast is a modified subcutaneous gland located on the anterior chest wall within the superficial fascia, with the deep layer of the fascia marking the breast's posterior boundary and the superficial portion of the fascia marking the anterior boundary. The breast is composed of the skin, subcutaneous tissue, and the corpus mammae (i.e., ducts, lobules, areolar structures, connective tissue, lymphatics, fat, blood vessels and nerves). Breast support is dependent upon the skin and weak suspensory ligaments (Cooper's ligaments) which are attached to the deep fascia overlying the pectoralis muscles. Due to limited intrinsic support, the breast is easily displaced during activity and may cause breast pain, particularly during exercise (Scurr et al., 2009; White et al., 2009; Bridgman et al., 2008; McGhee et al., 2007; Mason et al., 1999). Without proper support, the ligaments and skin may stretch, leading to breast sag or ptosis. Repeated loading leads to ligament creep and permanent stretching of the supporting structures of the breast. As gravity pulls down the breasts, the throat and face tissue are also pulled downwardly.
Research on breast biomechanics indicates that proper breast support may be an effective form of treatment for breast pain, prevention of ptosis, and avoidance of breast reductions in women having macromastia. Bras provide support and contour to the breasts; however, poorly fitted bras may cause discomfort, mastalgia, muscle tension, neck and back pain, headaches, fatigue, upper limb neural symptoms, abrasions, furrows caused by bra straps, poor posture, impaired circulation, shoulder strain, and breathing problems (Chen et al., 2010; McGhee et al., 2006; Bowles et al., 2005). It has been estimated that 70% of women wear incorrectly sized or poorly fitted bras (Wood et al., 2008).
Attempts have been made to improve the structure of bras to enhance breast support, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,406,699 to Lustig; U.S. Pat. No. 5,215,494 to Flanagan; U.S. Pat. No. 5,603,653 to Hartman; U.S. Pat. No. 5,908,346 to McCall; U.S. Pat. No. 7,607,966 to Fox; EP Patent Application No. 1,179,301 to Yoshihara; GB Patent Specification No. 139,725 to Barbu; and International Publication No. WO 2010/001136 to Morgan and Powell Vreeswiijk.
Girdles are commonly worn to support or mold the waist, stomach, hips, buttocks and thighs, to improve posture, and to provide pregnant women with back support. Girdles are commonly formed of materials having elasticity or stretch (Ibrahim, 1968). However, proper fitting of a girdle tends to be difficult since a girdle spans rounded areas of the body such as the stomach, hips and buttocks. Overly large girdles may fail to provide the required support, gape or bulge at the seams, or ride up and down the body, creating unflattering wrinkles under clothing. Girdles which are too small may constrict the body, impede breathing or circulation, dig into the flesh, and cause excess skin or fat to roll over the edges of the girdle. As with bras, women tend to select the wrong girdle size or have difficulty finding a properly fitting girdle which permits sitting, moving, and breathing without discomfort.
Improved girdles or lower body garments are disclosed for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 2,863,152 to Blatt; U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,775,767 and 3,261,359 to Gould; U.S. Pat. No. 3,339,554 to Nobbs; U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,991,611 and 7,578,798 to Rhee; GB Patent Application No. 2,273,646 to Kumai et al.; and International Publication No. WO 99/53783 to Balit.
Numerous methods have been developed to measure the human body to improve garment fit including, for example, linear methods including a tape measure, direct measure, proportional measure, anthropometer, calipers; multiple probe methods including complex anthropometer, somatography, minott method, planar method, CLAM, photography; body form methods including draping, casting, and body scans using lasers, millimeter waves, and structured light; and systems using data collection, data analysis, and/or data output, as disclosed by Loker and Ashdown, 2008; Bye et al., 2006; and Lee et al., 2004; and in U.S. Pat. No. 6,101,424 to Sawada; U.S. Pat. No. 7,164,962 to Petterson; US Patent Application Publication No. 2009/0215359 to Chapman et al.
Various types of garments or devices have been developed to obtain body measurements when fitted onto the body, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,180,180 and 2,283,108 to Versoy; U.S. Pat. No. 337,273 to Grinager and Ongley; U.S. Pat. No. 2,858,832 to Loeffel et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,868,990 to Steinberg; U.S. Pat. No. 6,276,069 to Chadwick et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 6,751,877 to Grove; GB Patent Specification No. 1,468,762 and GB Patent Application No. 2,201,579 to Sutherland; GB Patent Application No. 2,355,385 and GB Patent No. 2,371,207 to Nabarro.
Methods using a series of “try-on” apparels of predetermined dimensions are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,548,519 and 5,768,135 to Park et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 6,336,839 to Valli; and U.S. Pat. No. 7,058,471 to Watanabe.
Several ISO standards relate to size designation of clothes including foundation garments (ISO 3635, ISO 4416, and ISO/TR 10652). These standard sizes describe combinations of body measurements that are commonly seen in the general population. Many women do not fall within these standard sizes if they have irregular proportions or belong to a demographic profile where women are generally smaller (for example, Asia; Zheng et al., 2007). As women age, their anatomical or physiological changes affect clothing fit (Ashdown and Na, 2008). Since there are many variations in women's figures and proportions, providing satisfactory fit with foundation garments such as bras and girdles and swimwear remains challenging for manufacturers and retailers.
Most foundation garments and swimwear are designed for the mass market in large quantities and standard sizes. At the onset, designers provide sketches of garments to pattern makers to create rough sample garments. Patterns can be formed by 2-D processes including flat, drafting and reverse engineering methods (Shin, 2007). In the flat method, a pattern is generated from an existing foundation pattern known as a block from which garment styles can be created. The pattern maker creates a new style by adding design details. In the drafting method, patterns are drawn directly onto paper using collected measurements taken from a pre-existing garment, an individual or a body form. In the reverse engineering process, patterns are made from an existing garment which is taken apart to generate pattern pieces.
Patterns can also be formed by 3-D processes including draping, wherein a garment is produced by applying inexpensive fabric such as muslin directly onto a 3-D form. The muslin is adjusted while on the 3-D form and details of the drape are marked (e.g., any darts, seams, gathers, tucks to remove or control buckling fabric). The drape is transferred to pattern paper to be traced. The 2-D pattern pieces are used to generate the sample garment. However, this method has its disadvantages since the body form may not necessarily represent real body proportions, and muslin may not share the characteristics of the specific fabric that will be used to make the final garment. Further, errors are introduced as garment details are translated from 3-D to 2-D and back to 3-D (Heisey et al., 1988). The method also does not consider personal preferences for loose or tight fitting clothing. The fit of the sample garments is confirmed by using mannequins or models. Several iterations of sample garments are required before the final garment is approved for mass manufacture. Following alterations and approval of the final stock fit, the factories begin production.
Custom-made foundation garments and swimwear are made according to the specifications of the wearer, but their creation is often expensive and time-consuming, requiring the wearer to make multiple appointments for detailed measuring, fitting and alterations.
There is thus a need in the art for methods for facilitating the fitting and preparation of foundation garments and swimwear.